An all too familiar experience..
When Darksiders 3 released, I was beyond eager to jump in and see where the series would go next. Unfortunately, it was a fairly forgettable title that just didn’t satisfy the expectations I had for it. The game, for the most part, was enjoyable, but it’s camera and several gameplay issues just painted an overally average experience.
For an in depth discussion of those issues and the game in general, please refer to my review here, as I won’t be diving into too much of the core game as this is a review for the DLC and what it offers to returning players.
Keepers of the Void is the second paid DLC released for Darksiders 3, and one that has some small story elements within. It’s not a terribly heavy narrative; Vulgrim needs his access to the Serpent Holes returned, and you will dive into the problem head on, removing those obstacles in your way as you discover the real reason behind his request. That’s pretty much it. The story and characters in the core Darksiders 3 experience was one of the titles strongest assets and sadly, none of that charm or depth is here, in the slightest. There are no fun and engaging boss personalities or characters to interact with; you have Vulgrim, a few generic bosses, and the same basic enemies all over again.
I mentioned in my full review that it was odd that there was an Armor tab in the game yet no armor present to take advantage of it. I mentioned it seemed likely this was a tab reserved for DLC and I was right. You’ll have access to several pairs of armor here that compliment the Hollow’s you have equipped. You’ll also unlock some amazing armor at the very end, which feels odd to give you it once all the content has been completed. If they release more DLC then ok, but it’s like being given the best weapon in the game just milliseconds before the credits roll; feels wasteful, lacking the importance it should bestow.
You’ll begin the DLC by talking to Vulgrim and then be transported to a location called the Void. Here, you will solve four dungeons that are designed around each of the hollows. As you progress, each subsequent dungeon will rely on the combined forces of the current and previous hollows. These dungeons are completed in a set order, so there isn’t any way to complete them in whatever order you’d want. While you can access this DLC really at any time, it’s preferred that you’ve collected each and every power and upgrade before doing so. I actually recommend completing the core game first and then taking on this content.
Each location is filled with puzzles, but sadly, they all mostly stay the same despite the new environments. Sure, there are hollow specific triggers that give the area a reason for their use, but most of the general puzzles you’ll encounter all more of less follow the same ideas, concepts, and solutions. These puzzles mostly rely on hitting an orb with your hollow’s charged attack and then see the blocks moved around that are triggered to a certain power. Each orb you encounter will be compatible with a selection of your powers, making the blocks move and react in different ways. You may also need to use Salvation in order to hit orbs that are just out of reach, even if the detection is a bit off sometimes.
Much like in the same way that all the dungeons in Breath of the Wild looked the same, despite the series being known for vast changes to how each location looked, the four puzzle dungeons here more or less look and act the same. Sure, there are some small changes to some environments, but you only really notice it during the initial dungeon, as many parts of that location were filled with boiling lava. After that, it’s more or less business as usual and everything from then on just simply lacks originality.
This sameness carries on to its bosses as well, as despite the change in their attacks and powers, the designs and encounters are dead similar. Fury approaches the rocky monster, it says nothing, Fury gets mad, and then the fight continues. While the final boss at least has some dialogue and a fun use of how it’s powers work, it’s still a bland encounter that is only marginally fun. Defeating each boss will grant you a new weapon to use within that hollow. These weapons still follow the same overall weapon types for that hollow, limiting how much of a shake up they could have really offered. The weapons are fun to use, but play it fairly safe.
Keepers of the Void, depending on your skill level, can easily be completed in a single sitting. The DLC is fairly low cost at $12.49 USD/CAD on Xbox, and a oddly $17.49 CAD on PSN. I’ll point out this isn’t the first time I’ve seen the same price for US and Canada on Xbox items with the PSN price being the actual converted amount.
If you’ve bought the DLC pass and are hyped to get in on more Darksiders 3 content, then Keepers of the Void may give you want you want. If you, like myself, found Darksiders 3 to be a fairly average experience, with a painfully mediocre camera, then this content isn’t going to entice you to jump back in. If I didn’t receive a code for this DLC, I probably would have just skipped past it as I pretty much had my fill with the core game already. Now, that being said, had this content been far more story heavy then I probably would have enjoyed it more, but, much like naming of its powers and abilities, it more or less is an experience that feels rather hollow.
A review code of Darksiders 3: Keepers of the Void was provided for the purpose of this review and played on an Xbox One X.
All screenshots were taken on an Xbox One X.